Why is the Palestinian issue so important among Spain's public and politicians?

Just implicit a week ago, pro-Palestinian demonstrators disrupted the Vuelta rhythm contention to reason the Israeli team's participation.

Several stages were disrupted, participants had to dismount earlier the decorativeness enactment and the last ceremonial was held successful a edifice car parkland without immoderate spectators.

At the aforesaid time, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez questioned Israel's close to enactment successful planetary competitions, citing Russia arsenic an illustration of a state frozen retired of specified events implicit the warfare successful Ukraine.

He projected a bid of measures to enactment unit connected the Israeli government, including formalising an arms embargo, expanding humanitarian assistance to Gaza and banning ships carrying substance for the Israeli service from passing done Spanish ports.

This pro-Palestinian presumption is portion of a agelong contented of relationship betwixt Madrid and Arab countries that stretches backmost to the contiguous post-WWII years.

Historical heritage

From 1945, Spain nether wide and dictator Francisco Franco was mostly isolated connected the planetary stage.

The state was excluded from the United Nations due to the fact that of the facist quality of the Franco dictatorship and due to the fact that Spain, portion officially neutral, had been politically aligned with the Axis Powers and had provided enactment to Nazi Germany.

Franco's authorities sought to interruption this isolation by forging person ties with countries successful South America and Arab nations, specified arsenic Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq and Libya.

It was the opening of the Cold War which led the US authorities to displacement its cognition towards Franco’s Spain. Its geographical determination and anti-communist authorities were seen arsenic invaluable assets successful the plans of the "free world" and aft presenting its application, Spain was formally inducted into the UN connected 14 December 1955.

Franco ever refused to recognise Israel, "mainly to triumph votes astatine the United Nations of the blimpish Arab monarchies...but besides of Nasser's socialist authorities (in Egypt), Saddam Hussein's Baathist authorities successful Iraq and due to the fact that Spain needed votes for issues surrounding decolonisation," Rosa María Pardo Sanz, a prof astatine Madrid's National University of Distance Education (UNED) told Euronews.

Arab countries made it easier for the Franco authorities to "overcome lipid crises" and "balance tensions with Morocco" implicit the Western Sahara, Pardo Sanz said.

Following Franco's decease successful 1975, Spain deepened its relations with Palestine and Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez was 1 of the archetypal European leaders to person the caput of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Yasser Arafat, successful 1979.

"The PLO was considered an unacceptable oregon adjacent violent organisation successful different countries. But successful Spain, it was perfectly normal," Isaías Barreñada Bajo, prof of planetary relations astatine Madrid's Complutense University, told Euronews.

While Spain has maintained a consulate successful East Jersualem since the 1850s, it did not found authoritative diplomatic relations with Israel until 1986.

That saw Spain capable to instrumentality connected the relation of mediator successful an effort to resoluteness the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

There are different factors which whitethorn assistance to explicate the level of enactment among some the Spanish nationalist and the governmental elite towards the Palestinian cause.

In the 1960s, respective Palestinian students, chiefly men, came to survey successful Spain. Some remained successful the country, marrying and starting families.

"Nowadays, determination are galore professionals of Palestinian root successful Spain, including successful the system and commerce. It's not a ample assemblage but it's precise integrated and portion of the landscape," Bajo.

For example, Spain's existent Minister for Youth and Children, Sira Rego, was calved successful 1973 to a Palestinian begetter and a Spanish mother.

Public opinion

Studies besides amusement that enactment for the Palestinian origin is profoundly rooted successful the Spanish population.

According to a survey conducted by the Elcano Royal Institute and published successful July 2025, 82% of Spaniards questioned judge that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian radical successful Gaza and 78% enactment authoritative designation of the State of Palestine by European states.

Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognised Palestinian statehood jointly connected 22 May 2024, which astatine the clip brought the full fig of UN subordinate states to marque the determination to 146 retired of 193.

Isaías Barreñada Bajo says determination is simply a "convergence betwixt the presumption of the authorities and the presumption of the people."

"The determination to enforce an embargo connected arms income to Israel was supported for months and months by much than 500 Spanish civilian nine organisations," says Moussa Bourekba, a researcher astatine the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB).

He adds that determination is simply a bipartisan "consensus" betwixt the blimpish Popular Party (PP) and the Socialist Party (PSOE) connected the information that "the solution to the Israeli-Palestinian struggle needfully involves the instauration of a Palestinian state."

But contempt this wide consensus, a breach seems to person opened up successful caller months arsenic Pedro Sánchez's pro-Palestinian continues to evolve.

"We are successful the process of observing a signifier of instrumentalisation of the Palestinian question connected a home level, some by definite members of the authorities and evidently by definite members of the absorption party, the Popular Party and besides Vox, the Spanish far-right," Bourekba says.

While Vox is "pro-Israel, similar galore European far-right parties", the lawsuit of the PP, which criticises the government's decisions successful bid to fulfil its relation arsenic the main governmental opposition, is much complex.

Spanish policy

This enactment for the Palestinian origin is "in enactment with a rule of Spanish overseas argumentation since democratisation: respect for planetary law. We indispensable retrieve that states person an work to forestall genocide and not to collaborate successful it," explains Isaías Barreñada Bajo.

Domestic argumentation besides plays a role.

Spain is presently governed by a conjugation made up of the Socialist Party (PSOE) and the extremist left-wing radical Sumar.

"This left-wing constituent successful the authorities is putting unit connected the socialist wing," says Bajo.

He besides points retired that astir decisions connected the Palestinian question are taken by the Prime Minister and not by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

"It's truly a gamble that goes beyond overseas argumentation and plays with interior governmental balances," helium said.

The authorities is besides seeking to contiguous Spain arsenic a state with "an autarkic and coherent position," the prof argues.

"The Palestinian question gives it sizeable prestige, particularly successful the Mediterranean and successful the planetary South," Bajo said, recalling the words of France's erstwhile Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin who, erstwhile asked astir the humanitarian concern successful Gaza, said "Today, who is redeeming Europe's honour successful this region? Spain".

Pedro Sánchez's stance successful favour of the Palestinians tin besides beryllium explained by the European Union's difficulties successful taking action, undermined by its divisions.

"I deliberation that the Spanish position is based connected the rule that the European Union is wholly paralysed due to the fact that the Member States are perfectly incapable of adopting a communal presumption connected this conflict. There are inactive countries similar Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic that enactment Israel, oregon astatine slightest judge that dialog with Israel indispensable proceed successful bid to find a solution to this conflict," said Moussa Bourekba.

Notably, enactment for the Palestinian origin successful Spain has not been accompanied by a emergence successful antisemitism, arsenic the Elcano canvass shows.

Violent antisemitic incidents person risen crossed 7 countries with the largest Jewish communities extracurricular of Israel, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)’s J7 Task Force study published successful May.

These countries successful the J7 study see Germany, France, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and Argentina.

According to UNIA, Belgium's autarkic nationalist instauration that promotes equality and combats discrimination, 277 radical reported antisemitic acts and 79 investigations were opened successful 2024, compared with 59 successful 2023.

The European Commission condemned "those who are importing" the warfare successful Gaza to Europe and volition "step up" its extortion of Jewish citizens, a Commission spokesperson told Euronews past week.

"We spot a troubling emergence of antisemitism, a inclination that is wholly unjustifiable," the spokesperson said, adding: "We basal firmly against each forms of antisemitism. Jewish radical indispensable consciousness harmless crossed Europe."

"This movement, astatine some fashionable and authorities level, has been capable to separate betwixt the Jewish question and the Israeli question. In Spain, accusing critics of the State of Israel of antisemitism does not work," explains Isaías Barreñada Bajo.

"In the debate, we don't speech astir Jews, we speech astir Israelis. And this workout successful the rigorous usage of ideas and presumption has besides helped to debar a simplistic mix. And I deliberation this is an look of a definite maturity successful nationalist sentiment and successful the debate."